I don't think I need to check on this but this is my first full album of hers I've listened to. (FYI I have heard this twice all the way through - I don't usually state this in reviews but I want make it clear that I have really thought my views of these tracks more than adequately) There is such a chasm when comparing this to so many other pop releases, for example by taking Taylor Swift's 2017 output as a comparison point. The drama in Ariana's life has been as public and online as it could perhaps possibly be, but the difference is that it is far from fabricated. Of course you can't criticise other pop singers for not having real (or worthy) personal issues to write about and then having perhaps exaggerated possible difficulties in song. It's just that on the surface this songwriting approach can often come across as inauthentic and it would sometimes just be better for artists to be more vague about heartbreak or fame. In the case of this album and its context, it goes without saying that having music that so openly addresses the sheer reality of the personal situation is both confronting and assuring. I do like this album, though not every song and perhaps at this stage not enough to go out and buy it, but I especially enjoy "thank u, next", "bad idea", "ghostin" and "fake smile". 3.5